The sun transmits energy to the earth in the form of visual light and thermal radiation. This solar energy has numerous potential uses and effects on human civilization. During particular earth axis orientations, the sun's transmitted visual light reflects off of physical objects, thereby enabling individuals to see, navigate, and differentiate among physical objects. The thermal radiation transmitted by the sun affects the relative temperature at a specific location depending on the earth's axial location with respect to the sun. In an effort to conserve natural resources and optimize energy usage, it is desirable to harness this solar energy for various practical applications. Therefore, these forms of transmitted solar energy are converted via various technologies into other forms of applicable energy, including electrical and hydrothermal. These solar technologies may be categorized as both active solar and passive solar. Active solar technologies incorporate the use of external energy to generate/convert energy from the sun. An example of an active solar system would include a mechanical tracking module coupled to a photovoltaic cell. Whereas, passive solar technology systems utilize the natural thermal transfer properties of the solar energy. Passive solar systems include climate control and water heating systems. Unfortunately, existing active and passive solar technologies fail to provide a system that efficiently utilizes both the visual and thermal properties of solar energy.
A common solar device is a multi-panel solar array designed to affect or harness the transmission of solar energy. Existing multi-panel arrays include conventional window blinds, featuring the ability to rotate the individual panels using a drawstring system so as to change the solar transmission properties. Other multi-panel arrays include photovoltaic solar panels positioned to receive solar energy. Existing multi-panel solar arrays are commonly positioned either on an interior or an exterior surface so as not to affect the climate within a particular space. For example, photovoltaic cells are commonly positioned on an exterior surface of an enclosure because of undesirable thermal affects such as heat transmission. Likewise, window blinds are positioned on interior surfaces adjacent to optically transparent materials such as glass because they are designed to primarily affect the visual light transmission component of solar energy. Unfortunately, window blinds also allow heat to transmit through the adjacent transparent material and into the interior region.
Therefore, there is a need in the industry for a system that efficiently affects both the visual and thermal components of solar energy in a manner that minimizes energy usage.